Jarvis and Kumalo

In Cry, the Beloved Country, the author, Alan Paton used two main characters to present both the whites and Africans’ point of view. James Jarvis, Paton’s European characters experienced a subtle but yet also impacting transition; His indifference towards the evolving problems of the society later surprisingly transformed into the courage to take actions in solving these problems. Through his journey in Johannesburg, trying to understand his son’s “liberal” view and witnessing a downfall of an African girl, Jarvis found out that his apathy only worsened the predicaments faced by his country; For he could not be a spectator after his son’s death, Jarvis decided to “…about doing whatever good is within his power.” However, Jarvis discovered that “such thing [helping Africans in anywhere he could] is not lightly done”, but required boldness and determination to fulfill these goals.

As the book II of Cry, the Beloved Country unfolded, Paton described Jarvis as a w...